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The Ambassador College Bible Correspondence
CourseLesson 61977

What is "HELL"?

Even if you are a faithful, believing Christian, you may go to
hell! Many of your loved ones are right now in hell! But don't be
alarmed. You probably have never heard the TRUTH about what "hell"
really is--and where most ideas on the subject came from. Just what
does the Bible teach about "hell"?

MILLIONS are in confusion about "hell." What is it? Where is it?
Who really goes there? And why?

Is "hell" a literal place--a geographical location? Is it
somewhere in the interior of the earth, in the heart of the sun, in
remote space? A Gallup survey in 1967 showed that 68 percent of
Americans believe in heaven, but only 54 percent are persuaded of the
reality of hell. Why the difference?

Probably because many of those who believe in a heaven simply
cannot bring themselves to think that a merciful, loving God would
consign anyone to a place of eternal torment!

Common Ideas of Hell

A survey in New Zealand indicated that 60 percent of New
Zealanders believe hell is simply a state of mind. Only 26 percent
believe hell is a literal place. In San Francisco, random passers-by
were asked: "How do you picture hell?" Some of the answers reveal the
utter confusion surrounding the subject in the minds of the
public.

First person: "Honestly, I have doubts there is such a place. I
feel hell is a means of scaring people so they will lead a better
life....If there is such a place, I suppose it is craggy and filled
with people feeding furnaces or breaking rocks."

Second person: "The idea of hell is one of the greatest means in
the world for teaching children good. Personally, however, I think it
is just a Biblical term."

Third person: "When I was young I had a clear picture of what hell
is like--flames and a devil with horns and a pitchfork. But a person
gets over this, just as he does with Santa Claus."

Fourth person: "I would rather not think about it."

Fifth person: "I have never thought of it except as I have seen it
staged in operas or plays."

Sixth person: "I picture hell as a big, hot, uncomfortable desert.
I think it does exist. Not down in the ground. But since someone put
us here, then he could easily have a place for us afterward."

Seventh person: "Hell is a place of unhappy confinement, like a
prison. Not necessarily with flames. More a torment of the spirit. I
believe it is an actual area, although not necessarily down any more
than heaven must be up."

Here are many vague ideas about hell, but almost no real
knowledge. Probably the clear majority are those who would just
"rather not think about it"!

What the Clergy Thinks

Many theologians today do not believe in a literal "hell." Said
one: "The essence of hell is separation from God--not really torture,
but torment."

Another described hell as "a condition of human existence." One
minister claimed hell is "the loss of communication, insensitivity to
spiritual values, the realization of how far short of our capacities
we have fallen, the memory of some of the things we have done." What
abysmal confusion!

Isn't it time we learned the TRUTH of the Bible?

The "Fiery Inferno"

Most everyone assumes one of two extremes concerning "hell." One
group totally denies that hell exists. Hell is passed off as an
ancient superstition which has no bearing whatever on modern
life.

The other group, including most so-called Bible fundamentalists,
pictures hell as a terrible place of never-ending torment where the
devil rules and his demons gleefully "roast" sinners like millions of
wieners on a barbecue spit. There is bitter weeping and wailing,
agonized cursing, shrieks and screams from those in eternal
torment--according to this concept.

Here is the terse summation of this popular belief from the
Encyclopedia Americana:

"As generally understood, hell is the abode of evil spirits; the
infernal regions...whither lost and condemned souls go after death to
suffer indescribable torments and eternal punishment.... Some have
thought of it as the place created by the Deity, where He punishes,
with inconceivable severity, and through all eternity, the souls of
those who through unbelief or through the worship of false gods have
angered Him. It is the place of divine revenge, untempered, NEVER
ENDING. This has been the idea most generally held by Christians,
Catholics, and Protestants alike. It is also the idea embodied in the
Mohammedan's conception....The main feature of hell as conceived by
Hindu, Persian, Egyptian, Grecian, and Christian theologians are
essentially the same" (from the article on "Hell," emphasis ours
throughout lesson)

But why do people believe what they believe? From where or from
whom have these popular ideas come?

From the Philosophers

A few prominent religious leaders of the Middle Ages left writings
and teachings which were so universally believed that they became the
accepted doctrine of the Christian-professing world. One of the most
important of these influential writers was Augustine (345-430
A.D.).

Augustine reasoned that there should be a temporary cleansing of
imperfect souls in purgatorial fire. He, like other influential men
of the Christian-professing church, were influenced by "pre-Christian
doctrine"--the doctrine of the ancient pagan philosophers and other
early church fathers (see Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th ed., article
"Purgatory").

Dante Alighieri (1265-1321), wrote a tremendously popular poem, La
Commedia, in three parts--Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise. Although
Dante's purpose for writing his Commedia was to ridicule the
religious concepts of hell which were prevalent during his day, his
writing nevertheless tremendously influenced popular though and
teaching. "Of all poets of modern times," says a modern author,
"Dante Alighieri was, perhaps, the greatest educator. He possibly had
a greater influence on the course of civilization than any other man
since his day...he wrote, in incomprehensible verse, an imaginative
and lurid account of a dismal hell--a long poem containing certain
phrases which caught the attention of the world, such as 'all hope
abandon...ye, who enter here!'...His 'Inferno' was based on Virgil
and Plato" (Dante and His Inferno).

And so Dante wrote from the ideas and concepts of the philosophers
Plato and Virgil and the prevalent "Christian" concepts of his day.
But who were Plato and Virgil?

Says the Encyclopedia Americana: "Virgil, pagan poet, 70-19 B.C.,
belonged to the national school of pagan Roman thought, influenced by
the Greek writers. Christians of the Middle Ages...believed he had
received some measure of divine inspiration."

Plato, born in Athens, Greece, 427 B.C., was a student of the
renowned Socrates. Plato's famous literary work Phaedo taught the
immorality of the soul--the foundation for other writings on the
doctrine of an eternal hell where wicked "souls" are supposedly
punished forever. So the world's concept of "hell" is admittedly a
product of human thinking--of pagan speculation--as men puzzled over
the eventual fate of the wicked.

What About the Billions of
Mankind?

Before we examine the Bible to see whether the common ideas about
hell could be true, let us consider where this concept of hell, if
true, would lead us.

On this earth there are more than three billion people. The most
populous lands are China, India, and others parts of Asia. But in
spite of the efforts of Western missionaries, more than half of all
the people on the earth have never so much as heard the only name by
which men may be saved (Acts 4:12)--the name of "Jesus Christ"!

Literally billions of people on this earth have lived and died
without having known anything about "salvation"--without ever having
seen a Bible. Now think what that means. If all the "unsaved" go
immediately to a fiery hell at death, then more than half the people
who have ever lived on this earth have been consigned to this
terrible punishment without ever having had a chance to escape
it!

Can you really believe that is the method an all-wise,
all-merciful loving God is using to work out His purpose here
below?

WHAT IS THE TRUTH?

We face these alternatives: Either the Creator reveals the TRUTH
on this subject in His inspired Word, or else we must fling up our
hands and confess we just don't know. Either we believe what the
Bible says, or we must--if we are rational and honest--admit
ignorance.

What does God say about "hell" in the Bible? You may be surprised!
So be sure to read all of the scripture references given in this
lesson, and PROVE the truth from the Bible with your own eyes.

LESSON 6

Christ Spoke of "Hell Fire"

1. In His parable-like illustration, what punishment did Christ
warn would ultimately befall those who refuse to quit sinning--refuse
to stop using (obviously not literally "cut off") various of their
members to commit sin? Mark 9:43.

COMMENT: "hell" is an English word. When Mark recorded Christ's
words, he wrote them in the Greek language. The Greek word translated
"hell," which Mark was inspired to write down, is gehenna. Since in
this verse Christ says the sinner is "to go into hell, into the
fire," it follows that those who go to gehenna will receive
punishment by fire. Keep in mind then that Christ associated the
Greek word gehenna with fire.

2. What did Christ say in Mark 9:45 to emphasize what He said in
verse 43?

COMMENT: Mark wrote down the same Greek word gehenna here in verse
45 that he used in verse 43. The translators of the Authorized or
King James Version of the Bible of A.D. 1611 selected the English
word "hell" to represent this Greek word gehenna. We will learn more
about the real meaning of this word later.

3. How did Christ re-emphasize what He said about "hell fire"?
Verse 47.

COMMENT: Again, the Greek word which Mark used in this verse is
gehenna. Gehenna clearly refers to fire! But there are other words in
the Bible also translated "hell."

English Word "Hell" Misapplied

Let's read what A Dictionary of the Bible, edited by James
Hastings, says about the use of the word "hell" in the Old and New
Testaments. Keep in mind, as you read this, that the Old Testament
was originally written in the Hebrew language, and that the New
Testament was originally written in the Greek language.

Hastings says: "In our Authorized Version the word hell is
unfortunately used as the rendering of three distinct words, with
DIFFERENT IDEAS [Or meanings]. It represents, 1) the 'sheol'
of the Hebrew Old Testament, and the 'hades' in the New Testament....
It is now an entirely misleading rendering, especially in the New
Testament passages. The English revisers, therefore, have substituted
'hades' [going back to the original Greek word] for 'hell' in
the New Testament.... In the American revision the word 'hell' is
entirely discarded in this connection....

So we see that the real meanings of three different Greek
words--hades (equivalent to the Hebrew sheol of the Old Testament),
tartaros and gehenna --have been confused with each other because
translators have attempted to make the one English word "hell" cover
the definitions of all three words! No wonder confusion has reigned
in the minds of millions. What do these words really mean?

The original Old Testament Hebrew word sheol and the New Testament
Greek word hades mean the same thing--simply the grave. These
original words have been translated "grave" in many places in the
Bible. "Hell" is an old English word, and over 350 years ago when the
Authorized Version was translated, the people of England commonly
talked of "putting their potatoes in hell for the winter"--a good way
of preserving potatoes--for the word then meant merely A HOLE IN THE
GROUND which was covered up--a dark and silent place--a grave! But
pagan teachings gaining popular acceptance have caused people to
misapply the old English word "hell" to the lurid imaginations of
Dante.

The second Greek word, tartaros, which has also been translated
into the English word "hell," occurs only once in the New Testament,
(II Pet. 2:4) and does not refer to humans, but to the restrained
condition of fallen angels. Its meaning, translated into English, is
"darkness of the material universe," or "dark abyss," or
"prison."

But what about gehenna? This Greek word, as all authorities admit,
is derived from the name of the narrow, rocky Valley of Hinnom which
lay just outside Jerusalem. It was the place where refuse was
constantly burned up. Trash, filth, and the dead bodies of animals
and despised criminals were thrown into the fires of gehenna, or the
Valley of Hinnom. Ordinarily, everything thrown into this valley was
destroyed by fire--COMPLETELY BURNED UP. Therefore, Christ used
gehenna to picture the terrible fate of unrepentant sinners!

Two Different "Hells"

In most of the passages of the New Testament where we see the word
"hell," the original Greek word is not gehenna. Most often it is
hades--which does not refer to fire at all, but to a grave--a hole in
the ground. Yet the translators have confused and obliterated the two
entirely separate meanings of these words by indiscriminately
rendering them both by the same English word "hell." Let's study the
proof.

1. What can we learn from Luke 12:5 about "hell"?

COMMENT: If you were to look up the original Creek word that is
here translated into the English word "hell," you would find it is
gehenna. Gehenna, then, is plainly a place where bodies are thrown
and, as Christ indicated, DESTROYED BY FIRE!

2. But now notice the same English word "hell" in Acts 2:31?

COMMENT: The original Greek word which is translated by the
English word "hell" in Acts 2:31 is hades. Hades means the "grave,"
as its usage in this verse clearly shows! We can plainly see that the
English word "hell" can have different meanings! So when we come to
the word "hell" in the New Testament, we must keep in mind these two
vastly different meanings and carefully determine by the context
whether it refers to destruction by fire, or the grave where the dead
lie buried. Whenever you're in doubt about the intended meaning of
the word "hell" in the New Testament, look it up in an exhaustive
concordance, such as Strong's or Young's, to see which Greek word it
was translated from, and hence its true meaning.

Where to After Death?

In the preceding lesson we learned that when a person dies and is
interred in his grave, he knows absolutely nothing (Eccl. 9:5). He
merely lies quietly and silently there as in a "sleep," totally
oblivious to everything.

Let's briefly review this important truth.

1. What one thing befalls both men and beasts? Eccl. 3:19. Do they
all go to one place--the same place--when they die? Verse 20 and
Genesis 3:19.

COMMENT: Have you ever heard of beasts going to "hell" to be
tortured?

2. What place does God say man goes to when he dies? Eccl. 9:10.
Did Job realize he would go to the grave after death? Job 17:13.

3. Was the One who became Jesus Christ "made flesh"? John 1:14.
Did Christ take upon Himself the same mortal flesh of which we are
composed? Heb. 2:14. And didn't He also have to go to the grave as
other mortal men do? Turn to Acts 2:31 once again.

COMMENT: The original Greek word in Acts 2:31 is hades which, as
you now know, means the "grave." Jesus' "soul" (body) did not see
corruption (did not decompose in the grave) because He was
resurrected after three days! Some theologians, however, maintain the
tradition that Christ was preaching to departed human "spirits in
prison" (I Pet. 3:19) while He was in "hell." That idea is absolutely
false. Verse 20 makes it plain that those to whom Christ preached
(concerning their rebellious activities on earth) were demon spirits,
and that He preached to them during the days of Noah! This verse is
not talking about the three days and nights Jesus was dead in the
grave at all!

Resurrected to "Judgment"

You may have heard ministers preach that sinners go directly to
the fiery tortures of "hell" when they die. But this would mean they
are condemned to "hell" before they are formally judged and
sentenced! Let's notice when the wicked dead are judged by God.

1. When will the dead be judged? John 5:28, 29.

COMMENT: Christ said the judgment of the wicked dead, who are now
in their graves, is yet in the future. "The hour is coming," said
Jesus. Then how could they now be receiving punishment when they have
not, as yet, even been judged? The two ideas clearly contradict each
other! When will the dead be judged? Obviously after they come up
from their graves in a resurrection!

2. While they are in their graves--until the day of their
resurrection--are those who have already proved themselves to be
unjust "reserved" for a future time of formal sentencing and
punishment? II Pet. 2:9.

3. Does Revelation 20:13 also prove there is to be a future
resurrection to judgment?

COMMENT: Notice that those who are in watery graves (the sea) are
to be resurrected; and those who were killed by other means and left
unburied ("death") are to be resurrected; and those who are in earthy
graves ("hell"--the Greek word here is hades which means the grave)
are also to be resurrected at this time. So all the wicked dead on
land or in the sea, wherever they may be, are to be resurrected to
"JUDGMENT" in the future. That is when God will formally sentence
them! No one is, or ever has been, down in a fiery "hell" dancing
around on hot coals, shrieking in terror and torment! God's time for
judging and condemning the wicked has not yet arrived! How clear! The
whole question of "judgment" is thoroughly dealt with in
supplementary reading material offered in conjunction with this
Correspondence Course. Suffice it to say here that the Bible clearly
shows that the time the wicked are condemned to their fate is IN THE
FUTURE. The idea that wicked "souls" are right now suffering torments
in a fiery hell is a pagan myth!

Death By Fire

What is the ultimate penalty--the "wages," or reward--of sin? Is
it eternal life in torment? Or is it eternal oblivion? What is the
ultimate FATE of the wicked? The Bible makes the truth very
clear.

1. What is the "wages of sin"? Rom. 6:23.

COMMENT: The "wages of sin is DEATH." "Death" is the opposite of
"life"! The final wages the incorrigible wicked will receive, then,
is simply the complete cessation of life!

2. What does Paul warn will be the judgment or sentence of those
who, knowing God's commands and having tasted of His way of life,
willfully sin against Him? Heb. 10:26-27. Will such persons live on
in torment in fire--or will they be "devoured" by it? Verse 27.
Notice that this judgment comes on people because they sin
willfully.

3. Does Jesus compare false ministers who don't bring forth good
works to trees that don't bring forth "good fruit"? Matt. 7:15-19.
What did He say would happen to such people? Verse 19. Is wood put
into a fire to be tormented-or to be burned up? Did Christ clearly
indicate that all people who do not bring forth good fruit will
likewise be cast into fire? Matt. 7:17-19.

4. What did Christ say to the unrepentant scribes and Pharisees of
His day? Matt. 23:33.

COMMENT: The original Greek word translated here as "hell" is
gehenna--meaning the Valley of Hinnom. Christ used the fire that
burned up refuse in the Valley of Hinnom as a type of the final
fate--complete destruction--of the wicked by fire. Those rebellious
and stubborn religious leaders could well understand Christ's
analogy. They knew they were being threatened with complete
destruction as just so much trash!

5. What did Christ warn would happen to those who will not repent
of their sinful ways? Luke 13:3.

COMMENT: "Perish" means to cease existing. It does not mean to
continue living. Life in eternal torment is not what God has decreed
for incorrigible sinners! The punishment revealed in the Bible is
death--cessation of life forever. Eternal life is something we were
NOT born with. It is a gift of God which He will bestow at the
resurrection to those who obey Him. Eternal Life and death are
contrasted all through your Bible!

6. Did Christ show by His parable of the tares that there is to be
a future harvest? Matt. 13:30. Did He say the evil people--the
"tares"--will afterward be BURNED? Same verse.

COMMENT: In this parable Christ likened the earth to a "field"
(verse 24), the obedient people to "wheat" (verses 25, 29), and the
disobedient to "tares" (verses 25, 29, 30).

7. Does Psalm 37:20 also show the ultimate fate of the wicked will
be destruction by fire? Is there coming a time that will be extremely
hot--so hot that it will burn up--CONSUME--the wicked? Mal. 4:1. What
will be left of the wicked? Mal. 4:3. Who will burn the wicked
up--Satan and his demons, or the Eternal God? Same verse.

COMMENT: The "hell fire" that the Bible speaks of will be
thousands of degrees HOTTER than the imaginary "hell fire" of most
preachers--which is only hot enough to torment. The Biblical "hell
fire" will totally consume the disobedient! Never will they exist
again. The Bible plainly shows that those who have known God's truth
and still refuse to obey it, or willfully disobey, will reap the
wages of sin--eternal death! (Rom. 6:23). This scripture means what
it says. The attempts of many theologians to "explain away" death and
to "interpret" it as mere "separation from God" cannot be reconciled
with Scripture. Death clearly does NOT mean "eternal life" in the
horrifying torments of an eternal "hell." The author of this pagan
deception is none other than the father of lies--Satan the devil!
(John 8:44). If you have innocently believed his doctrine and have
suffered mental torment because of it, thank God that He has opened
your mind to understand the TRUTH!

What Is the "Lake of Fire"?

And now comes a most interesting revelation! Exactly what is the
gehenna fire that will consume the wicked? When and where will it
occur? Forget all the ideas you may previously have been led to
believe. Read now in your own Bible what God reveals. For "hell fire"
does not even exist yet!

1. Are all who stubbornly refuse to repent and persist in breaking
God's commandments ultimately to find themselves in a lake of "fire
and brimstone"? Rev. 21:8.

COMMENT: We've already seen that the fate of the wicked is gehenna
fire. So gehenna and the lake of fire are the same. A very large fire
would have the appearance of a fiery lake, hence its description.

2. Will it cause the death of the wicked? Notice Revelation 21:8
once again. Which death will it cause? Same verse.

COMMENT: Mortals naturally die once, because we just "wear out"
(Heb. 9:27). But if anyone dies the second death, that individual
will have been judged by God to be guilty of persistent disobedience
and incorrigible rebellion. The second death will be for all
eternity!

3. Does Revelation 20:13-14 verify the fact that all who are
incorrigible will be cast into this future lake of fire--not now, but
after the coming judgment? Will all mortals whose names will not have
been written in the book of (eternal) life be cast into the lake of
fire? Verse 15.

4. When does the lake of fire actually begin--at Christ's second
coming? Rev. 19:20. Will the two chief enemies of Christ be cast into
it at that time? Same verse.

5. How long will this fire last? Matt. 25:41.

COMMENT: The word "everlasting" is aionion in the Greek. Aionion
comes from the root aion which often means "age." In this case, the
correct translation into the English language should be "AGE-LASTING
fire." This "lake of fire" is going to be burning all during the
Millennium--the "age" of Christ's rule. During the millennial reign
of Christ and His saints, the Valley of Hinnom will once more be kept
perpetually burning--and the incorrigibly wicked ones who set their
WILL to persist in rebellion against God's laws will be THROWN INTO
this fire as a stern witness to all the rest of the world! (Isa.
66:24).

6. Much later--after the Millennium--will the flames of the "lake
of fire" purify the earth's surface, burning in one vast worldwide
holocaust? II Pet. 3:10. Will all the things man has created be
burned up, as well as the rest of those People who will not have
received salvation and eternal life because of willful rebellion
against God? Same verse and Rev. 20:15 once again.

COMMENT: Here is God's--not man's--description of what the final
"hell fire" will be like! It is yet in the future. It has not yet
occurred. Nothing is said anywhere in the entire Bible about "souls"
descending beneath the earth into "hell fire," or of torture for all
eternity! Rather, the Bible shows that all incorrigible human beings
and their works will suffer destruction once for all eternity. All
other teachings to the contrary have come to us from paganism!

7. Are the wicked to be reduced to ashes by the fire which will
consume the earth's surface? Turn to Malachi 4:3 once again. Can
ashes be tormented forever and ever? Of course not! The death they
will have suffered will be an eternal, everlasting punishment, not an
everlasting punishing by torment. There is a big difference between
punishment and punishing! The wages of sin is death" (Rom. 6:23), not
eternal life in hell fire!

8. What is meant in Revelation 20:14 by the words, "death and hell
were cast into the lake of fire"?

COMMENT: The original Greek word here translated "hell" is hades.
Only unrepentant sinners--those who refuse to obey God--will still be
mortal at the time of this resurrection. There will be no one else
who could die. Therefore, death and the grave will both cease to
exist when the lake of fire engulfs the entire surface of the
earth.

9. What will Satan's part be in this coming "hell fire"? Rev.
20:10.

COMMENT: Satan will be cast into the same conflagration that will
destroy all incorrigible mortals. But since he is a spirit being, he
will not be destroyed by the flames (see Luke 20:36) Notice that
Satan himself will be in "hell fire." He will not play the role of
torturing people as he is often represented by the doctrines of this
world. Revelation 20:10 shows Satan himself is to be TORMENTED unto
the ages of the ages--"FOREVER AND EVER"! His torment will last
forever. But not this fire. It will last only as long as combustible
material remains to be consumed. Satan's torment, however, will
continue forever as a mental anguish resulting from seeing all that
he has striven toward, worked for, plotted for, burned up as the
earth is purified by fire!

10. Will the "beast" and "false prophet" still be in this fire?
Rev. 20:10.

COMMENT: Some Bibles use italics to show that the word "are" in
this verse was supplied by the translators. It is not found in the
Greek manuscripts. The phrase should read, "where the beast and the
false prophet were"--the unwritten verb being understood to be in the
same tense as the verb in the first half of the sentence. The
Amplified Bible has it correct. These two mortal individuals will
have been destroyed over 1,000 years before the time Satan is put
into these flames.

2. Did Jesus say that hell fire will never be "quenched"? Mark
9:43-48. (Recall the Greek word for "hell" in verses 43, 45 and 47 is
gehenna.)

COMMENT: Jesus repeated this statement five times for emphasis.
From this, people have carelessly assumed the "fire that never shall
be quenched" (verse 43) is a fire of torture which has been in
existence for centuries, and will continue to exist for eternity. We
have proved that this idea is absolutely false! Notice God's own
inspired explanation of unquenchable hell fire.

3. Did God (over 2,500 years ago) warn the inhabitants of
Jerusalem that He would kindle a fire in Jerusalem's gates that would
not be quenched? Jer. 17:27. But what would that fire do to the
city's palaces? Same verse.

COMMENT: This fire occurred a few years later, and it destroyed
all the houses of Jerusalem (Jer. 52:13). Since God said this fire
"shall not be quenched" and since it is not burning today, it
obviously went out by itself after accomplishing its purpose--after
devouring all combustible material!

4. What punishment befell the notorious cities of Sodom and
Gomorrah? Gen. 19:24. Was it literal fire that destroyed human
beings? Luke 17:29. What do we read in Jude 7 about this event? Is
there still a fire burning in those cities which God destroyed long
ago? Of course not!

COMMENT: The expression "eternal fire" used in Jude 7 means a fire
whose results are permanent or everlasting--obviously not a fire that
burns forever! Sodom and Gomorrah were utterly destroyed centuries
ago--they are not burning today. The fires which burned these cities
simply died out after consuming all combustible material. These
scriptures prove the "fire that shall not be quenched" will NOT
torment people forever and ever! Christ, as we have seen, often
referred to the fires that burned in the Valley of Hinnom at the edge
of Jerusalem to illustrate the final "hell fire" or gehenna which is
to consume the wicked. But did those fires ever go out? The fact is,
they were kept burning as long as there was refuse to burn. Then they
burned themselves out! They were never quenched or put out
prematurely by anyone! The flames merely died out when they had
nothing more to consume. Even so it will be with the FINAL gehenna
fire. It will be unquenched--but it will finally burn itself out!

"Worm That Dieth Not"

A startling statement is found in Mark 9:44, 46 and 48. In these
verses, Christ spoke of a worm that "dieth not. " Are there really
immortal worms?

Some people think Jesus referred to people as worms, and that He
was trying to say that these "people" never die but live on forever
in agonizing torment. However, those who believe this fail to notice
that what Jesus spoke of was "their worm." So the wicked themselves
are not the "worm." What is this mysterious "worm" that does not die?
Notice what Jesus really meant.

Jesus clearly had reference, as the marginal notes of many Bibles
show, to Isaiah 66:24, where a similar statement is made about "their
worm"--the worm of dead "carcasses." (Be sure to read this verse in
your Bible.) Now what is the "worm" of a dead , decaying carcass? If
you have ever seen a putrefying carcass, the answer should be
obvious. To put the matter beyond all doubt, we find that the
lexicons define grub or maggot both the Greek and the Hebrew words
translated as "worm" in Mark 9:44 and Isaiah 66:24.

When a dead body occasionally lodged on one of the rocky ledges
above the garbage fires of the Valley of Hinnom, it was soon infested
by many worms or maggots which hatched out of eggs laid by flies. It
was simply these worms to which Christ referred when He said, "their
worm dieth not." But Jesus didn't mean that each individual worm
continued to live forever! Actually, the larvae--maggots--would hatch
from eggs, eat the flesh, continue in the larval form only a few
days, then go through pupation or metamorphosis and finally emerge as
flies! The worms didn't die--they became flies! Later, the flies
died. These are facts known by any student of biology! And Christ was
not ignorant of them.

By contrast, the misunderstanding of Christ's simple statement by
some people should be an object lesson to always be careful to use
wisdom and common sense in studying God's Word. The Holy Spirit is
the spirit of a sound mind (II Tim. 1:7). The Bible is one book that
makes good sense! Let's always study these perplexing scriptures
carefully and not jump to hasty, erroneous, weird conclusions.

The Story of "Lazarus and the Rich
Man"

Jesus' story of Lazarus and the rich man (Luke 16:19-31) is
perhaps one of the most outstanding texts used by those who attempt
to prove there is an eternal hell fire. What lesson did Jesus intend
to illustrate by this strange story? Let's carefully study this story
word by word, comparing it with other crystal-clear scriptures.

1. Did Lazarus--a poor but righteous beggar--die? Luke 16:22. Was
he later carried by angels to "Abraham's bosom"? Same verse.

COMMENT: If we are Christ's, God considers us Abraham's
"seed"--descendants or children--and we become heirs with Abraham to
receive the promises God made to him (Gal. 3:29). Through faith we
may all become "children of Abraham" (Gal. 3:7). This is an intimate
relationship--a close or bosom relationship, spiritually
speaking--with Abraham. We are to be in close contact with him in
sharing the promises. This is the sense in which righteous Lazarus
was taken to "Abraham's bosom." When, then, will Abraham and the
Lazarus of our story actually receive the fulfillment of the
promises? The answer of the Bible is that Abraham and the saints--his
"seed"--will inherit the promises at the resurrection of the just
when Jesus Christ returns to earth to establish the Kingdom of God!
(We will study more about the subject of the Christian's inheritance
in the next lesson.)

2. And what about the sinful rich man of Jesus' parable? Did he
also die? Luke 16:22. And do we next see him lifting up his eyes,
indicating his having been resurrected, and calling to Abraham for a
few drops of water to cool his tongue, being in mental torment? Luke
16:23-24.

COMMENT: The word "hell" used here is translated from the original
Greek word hades, which we know means the "grave." It is not from the
Greek word gehenna, which represents the future lake of fire that
will DESTROY the wicked forever. The rich man is pictured at the very
moment of his coming up out of his GRAVE in a resurrection! Abraham
and Lazarus will have already inherited eternal life in God's Kingdom
(Matt. 25:34). They will have been immortal for over 1,000 years
BEFORE the wicked rich man is resurrected to be burned in the lake of
fire (Rev. 20:4-5, 15). Until then, the rich man will have been dead
in his grave, having no consciousness of the passing time (Eccl.
9:5). At his resurrection, the rich man will see the flames of the
lake of fire beginning to surround him. He knows these flames will
destroy him forever. Being in great mental agony, he asks for just a
little water to cool his tongue, which has become dry from his mental
anguish. He does not ask for buckets or oceans of water to put the
fire out. He knows such a request would be denied.

3. What did Abraham then answer the rich man? Luke 16:25-26.

COMMENT: The great "gulf" between the two will be the difference
between mortality and immortality. Those who will have been made
immortal shall never die because they will have been born of God
(Rev. 20:6). Abraham and the beggar will be on the immortal side of
this gulf--the mortal rich man on the other side, facing imminent
eternal death by fire! Many of the condemned, like the rich man, will
want their relatives warned (Luke 16:27-28), not realizing how much
time has passed since they died and that all other people will
already have had their chance to receive salvation. The story or
parable of "Lazarus and the rich man" does not prove eternal
punishing by God in hell fire. Rather, Christ used this short
illustration to picture to His listeners the REALITY of the
resurrection from the dead of both the righteous and the wicked. He
was picturing the resurrection to ETERNAL LIFE as contrasted with the
ultimate fate of the wicked--the resurrection to ETERNAL DEATH!

God Is Love--and Justice!

Why do so many people have a false concept of "hell"? Because they
fail to understand God's overall purpose in putting man on this
earth. God's purpose for man is to develop holy, righteous character
which will make him fit to receive the precious gift of eternal life.
But God created man of the dust of the ground, subject to death, so
that if he failed to develop right character he could be released
from his misery by death.

God has no desire to torment or to torture anyone. God is love (I
John 4:8). He created us mortal for our own good. He will condemn no
one because of ignorance, and will see to it that every single one
will ultimately learn the truth and have a real chance for salvation.
But if God granted eternal life to those who persistently rebel and
fail to develop righteous character, they would simply bring misery
on themselves as well as others for all eternity!

Certainly the kindest thing God can do, for all involved, is not
to allow such a rebel to continue living. So God will simply put the
incorrigibly rebellious to DEATH-not mercilessly torture them
forever! God is also a God of justice. The obedient will be given the
free gift of eternal life. But the disobedient must also be paid the
wages they have earned. The final or second death--eternal death in
the lake of fire--will be the penalty there own sins have
incurred.

This truth should inspire no unreasoning terror such as the pagan,
satanic doctrine of eternal hell fire has caused to so many innocent
people. On the other hand, the lake of fire should stand as a FEARFUL
WARNING to all who know God's truth and still stubbornly refuse to
obey it! Only those who obey God--those who become and remain
Christians in the true sense of the word--will inherit eternal life
(John 3:16). All others who willfully live in disobedience to God
will die the second death. Those are the two alternatives God places
before each of us--eternal life on the one hand, and everlasting
death on the other.

The idea of an ever-burning "hell" is clearly a pagan myth and
superstition. It is merely a fable that has crept into professing
Christianity. But the Biblical hell fire--the one Christ spoke
of--will be VERY REAL! It will consume the incorrigible wicked,
reducing them to mere ashes.

Let's strive to qualify for eternal life so we will not have to
pay the penalty of eternal death--extinction in the lake of fire.

TEST YOUR MEMORY

This quiz is designed to help you remember the important facts you
learned in the lesson. You simply circle, or underline each correct
answer. After you've finished, check your choices with the correct
answers at the end of this test, and then rate yourself.

1. "Hell" is a subject A. nowhere mentioned in the Bible. B. not
well understood by most people today. C. that was well understood by
the ancient pagans. D. that was first introduced by Dante
Alighieri.

2. Dante got his ideas about hell from A. Polycarp. B. the Bible.
C. Plato and Virgil. D. attested personal experiences of some who had
been there.

3. Which of the following do NOT believe that there is a place of
never-ending divine torment and vengeance called "hell"? A.
Catholics. B. Protestants. C. Mohammedans and Hindus. D. Christians
who accept the literal interpretation of the Bible.

4. Most of this world's people A. are headed for an ever-burning
hell. B. have never had a chance to receive salvation. C. believe in
Jesus Christ. D. will never go to "hell"--Greek hades.

5. Jesus Christ spoke of A. a hell of eternal torment and torture.
B. Jewish myths of a gehenna in order to refute them. C. a place of
fire that will never be quenched. D. the grave as a place of
fire.

6. The English word "hell" originally meant A. simply a grave or a
hole in the ground. B. a garbage dump. C. the eternal home of wicked
immortal souls. D. a condition of restraint for evil spirits.

7. Which of these words is NOT translated "hell" in the Authorized
Version of the Bible? A. Gehenna. B. Hades. C. Sheol. D. Abussos.

8. Those who have died are now A. simply in their graves. B. in
torments. C. disembodied spirits free to roam the universe at will.
D. immortal worms.

9. How can you always know the meaning of the word "hell" when you
read it in your Bible? A. By remembering it always means fire. B. By
deducing it from the context. C. You can't ever be sure. D. By
checking it in an exhaustive concordance of the Bible such as
Strong's or Young's.

10. Hell fire is to be A. everlasting fire in the cavernous depths
of the earth. B. the lake of fire on the earth's surface. C. on the
surface of the sun. D. on the moon.

TRUE OR FALSE

11. Jesus preached to wicked spirits in prison while He was in
"hell" (hades--the grave). TF

12. Satan and his demons will be destroyed in the lake of fire
along with the incorrigible wicked of humanity. TF

13. The fires that burned and destroyed the ancient city of
Jerusalem were never "quenched." TF

14. The parable of Lazarus and the rich man proves there is--right
now--an eternal punishing of the wicked going on. TF

15. The kindest thing God could do is to destroy forever anyone
who refuses to live the way of life that is conducive to peace and
happiness. T F

MATCHING

Draw a line from each numbered phrase to the correctly related
lettered phrase.